Watch a Shark Knock a Man Off His Paddleboard

Melissa Locker

April 13, 2016

Cue the Jaws soundtrack. Last week, Florida paddleboarder Maximo Trinidad was enjoying a quick ride during his lunch break when a spinner shark jumped out of the ocean, knocking him off his board and into the water, reports the Orlando Sentinel.

Trinidad was able to capture the shark’s assault on video thanks to the GoPro camera he had attached to the front of his board. “He landed on the side of my board and I had to jump over him so I wouldn’t get bitten. It was just a matter of a couple of feet or I could have landed on top of him!” said Trinidad in an interview with WPTV, boldly laughing about the incident.

The non-profit Shark Research Institute notes that spinner sharks aren't known to attack humans, but have bitten a few. Regardless, it’s unlikely that Trinidad had the time or wherewithal to make note of the exact species of shark that had knocked him off the board, while he was swimming in the water.

He seems unfazed by the close encounter, though. Perhaps, because this isn’t Trinidad’s first face-to-face experience with a shark. He told WPTV that another time he was out on his paddleboard, he saw a shark jump out of the water, up to eye-level.